TD Asset Management Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST)

TD Asset Management Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. (NYSE:WST - Free Report) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 413,013 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock after selling 37,294 shares during the quarter. TD Asset Management Inc. owned 0.57% of West Pharmaceutical Services worth $135,287,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in West Pharmaceutical Services in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in West Pharmaceutical Services during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings in West Pharmaceutical Services by 57.1% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 110 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of West Pharmaceutical Services by 150.9% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 133 shares of the medical instruments supplier's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup started coverage on shares of West Pharmaceutical Services in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on West Pharmaceutical Services in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $275.00 target price for the company. KeyCorp cut their price objective on West Pharmaceutical Services from $470.00 to $325.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group raised West Pharmaceutical Services from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $350.00 to $390.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of West Pharmaceutical Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, West Pharmaceutical Services has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $332.50.

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West Pharmaceutical Services Stock Performance

West Pharmaceutical Services stock traded down $3.98 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $222.08. The stock had a trading volume of 496,755 shares, compared to its average volume of 664,265. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.06 billion, a PE ratio of 33.20, a P/E/G ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 1.09. West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $197.01 and a 12 month high of $396.75. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $263.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $297.82.

West Pharmaceutical Services (NYSE:WST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The medical instruments supplier reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. West Pharmaceutical Services had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 18.60%. The business had revenue of $748.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $739.59 million. As a group, research analysts predict that West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Pharmaceutical Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.38%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. West Pharmaceutical Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 12.56%.

West Pharmaceutical Services Company Profile

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells containment and delivery systems for injectable drugs and healthcare products in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. It operates in two segments, Proprietary Products and Contract-Manufactured Products.